Taggers

Re "Taggers Smell Defeat," Oct. 2: The item about the taggers in the horse stable struck a particularly disturbing note. How is it that these young people who have reached the ages of 12 and 13 have never learned that it is wrong and socially unacceptable to spray-paint others' property? The thought that they were about to spray-paint a horse is chilling evidence that they are a danger to the environment and to life. JOHN DEGATINA Los Angeles

A suspected tagger was struck and killed by a car Thursday after he ran into traffic on the 605 Freeway while trying to flee from Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies, California Highway Patrol officials said. The deputies approached him after they observed him vandalizing a wall, the CHP said. Chante Shanok Prieto, 26, died on the northbound 605 Freeway about 9:30 p.m., said Los Angeles County coroner's Capt. John Kades. Investigating CHP Officer M. Frattaroli said in a preliminary report that Prieto was "observed vandalizing a wall on (the)

An observant citizen aided Costa Mesa Police Department gang officers in the arrest of three alleged taggers. Lani Nmn Kilma, 26, and David Pena and Erick Huipe, both 20, were arrested for painting graffiti on Miner Street alley walls, close to Joann Street. The three Costa Mesa residents were caught on a surveillance camera by an onlooker who watched them exit from a Dodge four-door vehicle from the late 1990s. The driver sprayed paint on large sections of the east and west walls, while the passengers kept a watchful eye, police reports said about the incident, which occurred in February.

Before he dies, Elliot Kharkats wants to have children. We know this because the Westchester resident hand-printed that wish himself on a large chalkboard that he placed in the 8700 block of La Tijera Boulevard. Over the last several months, passersby have responded by the hundreds to express their innermost hopes. They use chalk that Kharkats helpfully provides to fill in 52 stenciled "Before I die I want to... " blanks that cover the board, which is attached to a large gate on his backyard fence.

Re "Trying to Picture L.A. Clearly," Commentary, Sept. 6: Maybe the only place that is safe from the taggers is in a cave. I watched the battle Caltrans waged with the taggers regarding Kent Twitchell's "The Runners." The taggers tagged his mural, and Caltrans discreetly tried to cover it up without much success, finally giving in to the overwhelming destruction of the mural by these taggers. I drive the 405 Freeway every day and between Hughes Parkway and Century Boulevard look at the walls that border the freeway.

Police say an alleged tagger known as "Blert" and four others, all teen-agers, had no idea someone was watching as they dashed in the darkness toward a pristine section of the Simi Valley Freeway over the weekend. Usually, no one is. But this weekend, the bushes along the freeway had eyes. About 20 to 30 neighborhood volunteers staked out a five-mile stretch of the freeway with binoculars and video cameras from 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Former members of the Metro Transit Assassins tagging crew will not have to pay the city of Los Angeles millions of dollars for graffiti cleanup, but a few could be subject to the same restrictions placed on gang members under an agreement reached with the city attorney. The settlements, announced Wednesday, resolve a landmark lawsuit filed by City Atty. Carmen Trutanich, who sought to treat taggers as gang members by restricting their behavior through an injunction. The lawsuit against 11 alleged members of the crew was filed in June 2010 in response to a quarter-mile-long "graffiti bomb" of the taggers' acronym along the Los Angeles River.

Re "A new way to capture taggers, other vandals," Sept. 20 They shoot women, don't they? Not the talking cameras installed atop poles to capture taggers and trash-dumpers in the act, but the taggers. Two women in two weeks were shot to death by taggers after telling the vandals to knock it off. If taggers have no qualms about shooting women, what makes our city officials think gangbanging taggers won't shoot out the cameras?

Like ghosts in the night they are never seen by most of us, but their deeds are there, in the light of day, covering our city and county. Those in authority try to convince us that the graffiti taggers are not a serious threat and that there is no connection between them and the really serious gangs. They are wrong. No matter where these children start from, they are all on the same path. That path began with the inattentive parents and boredom and progressed to an addiction, an addiction that is now taking those taggers into their phase of violence, right behind the gangbangers.

Coach and critic Re "Jackson enters the immigration arena," May 18 Lakers coach Phil Jackson's habitual, meandering doublespeak long ago confirmed that sports success is no proof of superior intellect. Of what value is so-called deep thinking when the crucial companion skill for intelligible articulation is absent? His political views on complex issues like immigration are best taken lightly or ignored. Even in his team sport, he was very slow to recognize that depending on a single player for 90% of what is needed to gain a championship is a mistake.

An observant citizen aided Costa Mesa Police Department gang officers in the arrest of three alleged taggers. Lani Nmn Kilma, 26, and David Pena and Erick Huipe, both 20, were arrested for painting graffiti on Miner Street alley walls, close to Joann Street. The three Costa Mesa residents were caught on a surveillance camera by an onlooker who watched them exit from a Dodge four-door vehicle from the late 1990s. The driver sprayed paint on large sections of the east and west walls, while the passengers kept a watchful eye, police reports said about the incident, which occurred in February.

The can of spray paint sat on the ledge of a downtown Sacramento office tower. A tool for etching glass lay below. The body of Craig Fugate was tangled in some ropes about nine stories up the tower. Authorities on Tuesday were trying to piece together the bizarre death. They believe Fugate was somehow killed Monday while trying to vandalize the office building. "They found the spray paint where he climbed down" but no actual tags, Officer Doug Morse said. The Sacramento coroner's office is still trying to determine a cause of death.

A man whose body was found hanging from a downtown Sacramento building Monday, nine stories up, appears to be a tagger who was attempting the vandalize the property, authorities say. The man had used rope to tie himself in a seated position like a rappeller, authorities said. The rope was tied off with a window washing anchor, and fire officials believe that that anchor could have held his weight. But they don't think he was a window washer. The Sacramento Bee reported that the man had two pieces of rope looped around his body in a style used by rock climbers.

A man whose body was found dangling outside a downtown Sacramento office tower may have been a tagger, authorities said. At some point Monday morning, it appears the man tied a rope around himself, authorities said. However, he was tied in a seated position like a rappeller. The rope was tied off with a window washing anchor, and fire officials believe that that anchor could have held his weight. But they don't think he was a window washer. Around 7:45 a.m., a person in another building reported seeing the man hanging near 12th and K streets.

Selena Gomez has signed on to represent Adidas' Neo label for the next three years, and they got the collaboration going with this video, released Tuesday, showing Gomez and "pals" behaving pretty much like a tagger gang in Los Angeles. Gomez's gig involves being the brand's "global style icon" and guest designer, according to a news release. As you get ready for Cyber Monday, be cautious. WWD reports that one in five online bargain shoppers is duped into buying counterfeit luxury items.

November 5, 2012 | By Hector Becerra and Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times

The congregation was singing and praying Sunday evening inside Iglesia Principe de Paz, a weathered storefront church on Beverly Boulevard, when a parishioner checking on the food being set up in the parking lot saw something suspicious. A young woman was spraying graffiti on a church wall. When he asked her to stop, she knocked him to the ground. Just then, Andres Ordonez and another church member rushed outside to help. As they arrived, a man emerged from a nearby car and opened fire, killing Ordonez and wounding the other parishioner.

After the coffee. Before seeing if anyone has snapped up sequel rights for "Oogieloves. " The Skinny: I saw "For a Good Time Call" on Monday, a cute comedy about two reluctant friends who launch a phone sex business. Despite the potential for raunch, it was fairly tame by today's standards and is just a few edits away from being a Lifetime movie. Tuesday's headlines include a recap of the disappointing summer box office season, the sale of Dick Clark Productions and a look at the Telluride Film Festival.